An Urban Farm? With Limits, But Yes You Can
I live in Portland, Oregon, and yes, it’s true that it is an all-around super cool city, and one of those crazy things that make it cool is that chickens are allowed. Yes, that’s right, right in the city, you can have your own little urban farmyard.
Does your city allow chickens? I found a pretty decent listing of local chicken laws across the United States as compiled by The City Chicken. You will notice that most cities have limits on the number of chickens you may have, as well as the gender. Hens do not necessarily need a rooster around the lay eggs, but hens have the tendency to pretend to be the rooster if one is not a part of your flock…wait, brood, wait, wait, clutch. Oh, forget it. I’m calling it a flocken.
Chickens? Really? Chickens…Yeah, yeah, I know, but seriously, chickens are great. If you have the space and the gumption, you really should think about housing some chicks around your yard. Chickens not only reward you with eggs, but also insect-control and a good foundation for really nutritious compost. And they also like to eat weeds around the yard, so think of chickens as nature’s little composting gardener.
And you could… eat them.
Chickens will be happy living in anything that provides a little bit of shelter. If you want the eggs, you will need to establish a nesting site, otherwise the hens will lay them in secret spots and try to hide them. Even a small yard will be plenty of room for a few hens.
With emphasis on living lightly and producing more of our own food locally, why not think about chickens? And how about adding a duck or two to really make it a farm.
Portland, Oregon, urban farm, urban, yard, backyard, chickens, flock, compost, insect control, gardener, hens, rooster, eggs, nesting
November 29th, 2008 at 3:05 pm
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